"we're on the cusp, the very beginning of sesquicentennial, the 150th anniversary, there is a lot of attention being paid in the next couple of months , the beginning of the war, Andersonville was a testament to the fact it was a 4 year war," said Leonard.

The Confederate prison operated late in the war from 1864 to the end in 1865.

"During 14 months of operation more than 40 thousand Union soldiers were help prisoner here and nearly 13,000 died here," said Leonard.

Disease, infection and malnutrition killed most of them. At its peak Camp Sumter was the 5th largest city of the confederacy during that time.

From the graves, to the shacks that once dotted these grounds it's a Civil War story Georgia wants visitors to hear.